Garrett "Big G" Jacobson

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma is damn hot in the summertime. June and July are unbearable when the sun is boring down on your back. You can feel your skin shrinking away from the rays, and in defense, you sweat buckets. If you don't have sunscreen, you will regret it the following day, and unsuspecting Northerners who come here to visit in the summertime fall victim to the heat, passing out from heat exhaustion. And, yes, this reporter braved the heat wave in Oklahoma City to check out the young blues phenomenon known as Big G, the kid who sings like James Brown and plays guitar like B.B. King, at the Bricktown Blues Festival in Oklahoma City's Bricktown district. It was a feat well rewarded.

Garrett "Big G" Jacobson put on a show that moved from Kansas City-style blues upriver to Chicago, and back again. His vocals come naturally and easily, and he seems very comfortable on stage. His guitar playing is usually right-on, with few moments of hesitation. His songwriting style is extremely likeable, and he has a great backup band, featuring keyboards, bass and drums. Big G was a very popular act, and he had an obvious following of fans in the audience, and none of them seemed to mind the heat while he was onstage.

Recently, XtremeMusician.com had the pleasure of interviewing Garrett "Big G" Jacobson. We had the chance to ask him about his use of horns, writing techniques, and equipment. The following is what Big G had to tell us:

XtremeMusician.com: How do you write and arrange the horn parts for your songs?

Big G: On my first CD "Rhythm Attack" I did not write or arrange the horn parts. On my new CD, which will be coming out in 2 weeks, I did write arrange the horn parts. Basically, after I have got the general idea and arrangement for a song in my head, I sit down and write horn charts that fit with my idea. Sometimes, I build the song around a particular horn line I hear in my head.

XtremeMusician.com: Gigging can be rigorous work. What do you do to prepare for gigs?

Big G: I have all my gear loaded in a truck all the time. The only thing I ever take out it my guitar (in order to re-string). I have to re-string after every show or I'm assured to break one or two by the end of the first set of the next show. I use a Mackie 808M powered mixer and 2 Peavey P5-G speakers which makes for a compact yet powerful setup for most gigs. It usually only takes about 20 minutes to get set up and ready to go. If I have to haul a larger P.A. rig it adds about 15 minutes on top of that.

XtremeMusician.com: Have you ever used stage theatrics as a part of your show, and if so, what were they?

Big G: I haven't ever used stage theatrics.

XtremeMusician.com: What direction do you see your music going in the future?

Big G: I see myself continuing to try to record the best soul, blues, and funk CD's I can and touring the US and overseas.

XtremeMusician.com: There is the biggest pleasure for you in music?

Big G: Being able to share it with others.

XtremeMusician.com would like to thank Garrett "Big G" Jacobson for the opportunity to find out a little more about his music and gigging.